Secret Painting in Rembrandt Masterpiece Coming into View

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Scientists may be one step closer to revealing a hidden portrait
behind a 380-year-old Rembrandt painting.

The masterpiece, "Old Man in Military Costume" by Dutch painter
Rembrant Harmenszoon van Rijn, resides at the J. Paul Getty
Museum in Los Angeles. Scientists had noticed the painting bears
faint traces of another portrait beneath its surface. Researchers
had previously probed the painting with infrared, neutron and
conventional X-ray methods, but could not see the behind the top
coat, largely because Rembrandt used the same paint (with the
same chemical composition) for the underpainting and the final
version.

New studies with more sophisticated X-ray techniques that can
parse through the painting's layers give art historians hope that
they may finally get to see who is depicted in the secret image.

"Our experiments demonstrate a possibility of how to reveal much
of the hidden picture," Matthias Alfeld from the University of
Antwerp said in a statement. "Compared to other techniques, the
X-ray investigation we tested is currently the best method to
look underneath the original painting."

Alfeld and an international team used
macro X-ray fluorescence analysis to examine a mock-up of
Rembrandt's original, created by museum intern Andrea Sartorius,
who used paints with the same chemical composition as those used
by the Dutch master. Sartorius painted one portrait on the canvas
and then an imitation of "Old Man in Military Costume" on top.
[ In
Photos: Looking for a Hidden Painting ]

When bombarded with these high-energy X-rays, light is absorbed
and emitted from different
pigments in different ways. The scientists targeted four
elements of the paint to fluoresce, including calcium, iron,
mercury and lead, and got much better impressions of the hidden
painting in the mock-up than they were able to before.

"The successful completion of these preliminary investigations on
the mock-up painting was an important first step," Karen
Trentelman, of the Getty Conservation Institute, said in a
statement. "The results of these studies will enable us determine
the best possible approach to employ in our planned upcoming
study of the real Rembrandt painting."

This isn't the first time scientists have delved into Rembrandt's
paintings. Previous research revealed why his art possesses such
calming beauty, finding the artist may have pioneered a technique
that guides the viewer's gaze around a portrait, creating a
special narrative and "calmer" viewing experience.
Essentially, the researchers found Rembrandt painted more
detail in and around the eyes of his subjects, tapping into an
innate human attraction to the face.